Mold is likely not the first thing that comes to mind as a risk associated with a hospital stay. Superbug infections like MRSA or medical errors are probably more concerning, but a new report concludes it should be considered equally as seriously.

According to media reports over the past week, mold infections have been responsible for five deaths since October 2014 at two University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) hospitals. The five patients who died were organ transplant recipients and therefore at higher risk of infection.

The hospital commissioned a report from two hospital environmental specialists back in 2015, which they received in May of 2016. It was recently filed in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas in two wrongful-death lawsuits brought against the hospital.

Community health workers have identified mold as a contributing factor to higher rates of asthma-related hospitalization and death among low-income adults.

A recent study used survey results from community health workers in Philadelphia. Many adults on low-incomes in the city live in rundown row homes built in the late 19th century. Mold is a common issue in such properties and residents suffering from asthma and various comorbidities often can't afford expensive mold remediation work that would improve their health (please see '5 Step Environmental Mold Removal' for our guide to an affordable approach). 

Researchers from the Community Asthma Prevention Program (CAPP) at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, who conducted the research, state that nationally the highest rates of asthma-related deaths and hospitalizations are among low-income minority adults, but most existing research doesn't focus on these patients.

Research shows infants who live in homes contaminated with mold are three times more likely to develop asthma by age 7, an age that children can be accurately diagnosed with the condition.

Study results are published in the August issue of Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, the scientific journal of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI).

"Early life exposure to mold seems to play a critical role in childhood asthma development," says Tiina Reponen, PhD, lead study author and University of Cincinnati (UC) professor of environmental health. "Genetic factors are also important to consider in asthma risk, since infants whose parents have an allergy or asthma are at the greatest risk of developing asthma."